Empowering West Africa: An Introductory Webinar Hosted by CFC

22 July 2024, Amsterdam. 

An Introductory Webinar for West African Nations was recently hosted by CFC, organized in cooperation with the Embassy of Burkina Faso, Brussels, on 22 July 2024.

The webinar brought together distinguished delegates, including ambassadors and representatives from various West African countries- Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Huinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo and the ECOWAS Permanent Representative to Brussels, to discuss CFC's mission and support mechanisms.

Commodity reliance is a fundamental cause of poverty for over 3  billion smallholder farmers globally. The webinar commenced  with welcome remarks from Amb. Sheikh Mohammed Belal,  Managing Director of the CFC, who highlighted the  organization's commitment to fostering economic growth and  development through sustainable commodity production and  trade. Following him, H.E. Mr. Léopold Tonguenoma  Bonkoungou, Ambassador of Burkina Faso and Coordinator for  the Region Group of West African Ambassadors of the  Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS),  extended his welcome and emphasized the importance of  collaborative efforts in the region to leverage CFC’s resources.

Amb. Sheikh Mohammed Belal presented a "General Introduction  to the CFC," outlining the organization's objectives,  achievements, and strategic vision for the future. Currently more  than 65% of the CFC operational projects are in Africa. This  significant focus underscores CFC's commitment to addressing commodity dependence and fostering sustainable economic growth and development across the continent.

He also highlighted the stark disparities in the coffee industry by noting that all coffee-producing countries in Africa collectively earned only USD 3.6 billion from coffee exports in 2022. In contrast, the coffee market size for a single country like Italy is valued at USD 3.92 billion. 

This was followed by an in-depth presentation by Mr. Hector Besong, Risk and Portfolio Manager at CFC, on "CFC’s financing support, Call for Proposals & ACT Fund." He elaborated on the various financial instruments and support mechanisms available to member countries, aiming to stimulate economic growth and development through innovative and sustainable projects. Also discussed was the recent partnership between CFC and CAFI (Central African Forest Initiative) aimed at protecting the worlds second largest forest basin, bringing together a coalition of donors and six Central African countries.

The session concluded with a Comments & Questions segment, which fostered an engaging and constructive dialogue among participants and allowed for clarifications on the presented topics and enabled valuable feedback to be shared.

The CFC remains steadfast in its commitment to cultivating productive partnerships and facilitating access to financing for transformative projects across West Africa. Ambassador Belal encouraged all the leading West African countries to remain engaged with the CFC and thereby brining more income for their smallholders and SMEs (small and medium enterprises).

The CFC encourages prospective applicants to submit their proposals through its Call for Proposals, as it strives to advance and sustain impactful development initiatives throughout the region.

The webinar was conducted in both English and French with the support of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS).